In 1948, a car appeared at the Earls Court Motor Show that very nearly defied description. Over 20 feet long and almost seven feet wide, the drophead coupe in the Daimler booth tipped the scales at over 6,000 pounds. Ultimately, the concept’s jade green hue delivered a nickname – the Green Goddess – and a total of seven examples, all bodied by Hooper & Company, were built. Last Sunday one of the remaining Green Goddess Daimlers, owned by Mark Hyman of St. Louis, Missouri, took the Governor’s Cup for Best in Show at The Elegance at Hershey, in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

A portion of the 2015 show field. Photo by Jim Butler.

Underpinned by a Daimler DE-36 chassis, Green Goddess models were powered by a 5.4-liter straight eight engine producing 150 horsepower and mated to a Daimler Fluid Flywheel transmission with a pre-selector mechanism. Hydraulics were used extensively to add a luxury touch, powering the top mechanism and painted steel tonneau cover along with jacks in all four corners, facilitating roadside repairs.

Bodies were crafted by Hooper & Company, using hand-beaten aluminum panels over a framework consisting of ash wood and metal-faced plywood. Steel plates were also used intermittently to add strength and rigidity, partially explaining the car’s three-ton-plus weight. With their enormous sculpted front fenders flowing all the way into the rear fender skirts, Green Goddess models (called this regardless of finish color) must have been an imposing sight for both pedestrians and passing motorists.

Inside, a unique seating arrangement delivered three-across seating on a front bench, coupled with a pair of armchair-style seats in the rear, positioned to allow occupants a view of the road ahead in between front seat passengers. Rear cabinets held decanters and glassware for fighting off the occasional chill (driver excepted, of course), and rear seats could be folded to allow for additional cargo room if needed.

Of the seven Green Goddess models created, four are known to survive today. The original concept, partially rebodied during a 1953 restoration, has been returned to its original appearance and jade green livery. A second car is owned by the Jaguar-Daimler Heritage Trust, while a third example is owned by author Clive Cussler. The Green Goddess taking top honors on Sunday was purchased by Hyman in 2010, and has been previously exhibited at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, and the Concours d’Elegance of America at St. Johns, where it delivered a class win.

1964 Aston Martin DB5, one of two built for Goldfinger and Thunderball.

Arguably the most famous car on the show field, the 1964 Aston Martin DB5 that appeared in Goldfinger and Thunderball captured the People’s Choice Award. Owned by Harry Yeaggy, the Aston Martin was originally used as the “Road Car ” during the filming of Goldfinger, since the weapon and defense-laden “Effects Car” proved too heavy for the driving scenes. For Thunderball, the DB5 was fitted with a complete assortment of Bond gadgets, which remained fitted to the car post-production. The original Effects Car was returned to stock form and sold off, passing through a few owners before vanishing from a Florida aircraft hangar in 1997 and leaving Yeaggy’s car as the sole surviving “original” Bond DB5.

Other key category winners included a 1938 Alfa Romeo 6C, owned by Oscar Davis, which captured the Founder’s Award; a 1938 Bugatti 57C Atalante Coupe with coachwork by Gangloff, owned by Rick Workman, which captured the Hotel Hershey Award; a 1937 Talbot-Lago T 150C SS, owned by J.W. Marriott Jr., which captured the Jack Rich Award (named for the event’s founder); a 1965 Cobra 289, owned by Rich Myers, which captured the Best Sporting Car Award; a 1952 Allard J2X, owned by James W. Taylor, which captured the Chief Judge’s Award; and a 1937 Packard 1508, owned by Dave and Linda Kane, which captured the Executive Director’s Award. Look for complete results in the coming days at TheEleganceAtHershey.com.

Though it looks like the 2.5-liter V-8 used in the Daimler SP250, this Daimler Hemi V-8 for sale on Hemmings.com boasts about double the displacement after it was bored and stroked from its original “big” Daimler V-8 specifications (4,561 cubic centimeters, worth about 220 horsepower) to the same specs that Jaguar Technical Director William Heynes suggested the company use for its Mk X (5.0 liters, estimated 280-290 horsepower). Jaguar never built such a car, but this engine in a Mk X could make for a historically accurate replica of that prototype. From the seller’s description:

original big Daimler V8 hemi which has been built to original factory experimental specification from the sixties, as installed in a prototype Jaguar Mk X. Weighing a mere 498 lbs, it has been bored and stroked to 5 litres (305 ci) with special forged pistons, blue printed and balanced. All aluminum parts are polished, all bearings, gaskets, valves etc. are brand new. The water pump and carburetors (opposed 2” SU HD8) have been rebuilt and the whole engine has been assembled by a very experienced Jaguar engine specialist. The engine is complete with all accessories – power steering pump, fan, air filter canister and element, exhaust manifolds, all brackets and engine mounts. Also included with this engine are an additional new old stock water pump and an additional intake manifold which could be modified for 4 bbl or Weber carburetors or throttle body or 8 stack fuel injection. Perfect for a sleeper Daimler SP250, a 250 V8 or a hot rod.

On February 14, 1896, Edward, Prince of Wales, future King Edward VII, became the first British royal to ride in a motorcar. It was likely a Daimler-engineered Panhard et Levassor, as the event was engineered by motorcar-industry promoter HJ Lawson to celebrate the creation of the Daimler Motor Company.

After selling more than $2.96 million worth of military vehicles at this past weekend’s National Military History Center auction, it appears the Indiana museum has been saved, and the museum has its collection of German half-tracks to thank for a good-sized chunk of that sum.

Eight of the top 10 sales at the auction, run by Auctions of America by RM, went to Teutonic trucks, with a 12-ton Daimler-Benz DB10 half-track leading the charge at $200,000, not including buyer’s premium. According to the auction description, the 12-ton half-tracks were built from 1935 to 1945 and were designed both to haul artillery pieces into position and to act as a heavy recovery vehicle. The DB10 version entered production with a 185hp gasoline Maybach V-12 just before the start of World War II and was primarily used to tow 17cm field guns and 21cm heavy howitzers. This particular example featured markings from the Towed Artillery Regiment and was sold without an engine.

Altogether, the military vehicle portion of the sale raised $2,964,750, more than enough to keep the Dean V. Kruse Foundation’s two remaining museums – the National History Military Center and the Kruse Automotive Horsepower and Carriage Museum – open. Even after selling off one of its buildings and prior to this auction, the foundation owed about $2 million of the $3.1 million in debt that Dean Kruse stacked up to build the museum complex.

A black V-8 roadster that was once Scotland Yard’s first line of defense against speeding hooligan bikers and criminals with high-powered sedans will be auctioned off later this month in England.

This police-issue 1962 Daimler SP250 Dart will cross the block at Historics at Brooklands on October 22. It’s one of 26 Daimler Darts purchased new to serve as high-speed pursuit vehicles for the Metropolitan Police Service of London.

“It will be a great help in curbing the menace of the ‘ton uppers’ – hooligan motorcyclists who boast of doing a ‘ton’ (100 MPH) in built-up areas,” wrote the Daily Mirror of the V-8 powered Daimlers. “If necessary the Darts could also be used to chase car bandits – who have often escaped in the past because their getaway cars were much more powerful than ordinary police saloons.”

The example being auctioned was decommissioned from police service in 1967, then used as an official course car for 13 years at the Goodwood Revival. Much of the original police equipment remains with the Dart, including the chrome Winkworth police bell that warned of the car’s rapid approach.

One of the more unusual vehicles to show up at our cruise night last week was the 1960 Daimler Ferret that Andrew Shedden brought over from Brunswick, New York, and used to claim the Favorite Truck award. As you can see, Andrew spent most of the evening not just explaining what it was, but also giving kids a chance to check it out up close. Andrew shot us an email recently with a little more on his Ferret:

My ferret is a mk 2/3 FV701H which is one of several variations with upgraded armor and a turret with a 30 cal light machine gun. The transmission is a preselector “fluid flywheel” with 5 speeds forward and reverse. Top speed is 55 mph forward OR reverse. The engine is a Rolls Royce B60 6 cylinder water cooled engine with a swept volume of 4.26L. This produces 129bhp @3750rpm. (approx 35 hp per ton) Vehicle weight is approximately 8600lbs. Crew of 2. (driver and commander)

My vehicle records show it was in use in combat in Borneo in 1964 with the Queens Royal Irish Hussars. Later it was used with peacekeeping forces in Northern Ireland. The bw photo shows my vehicle in Borneo in 1964 (mine is the vehicle in the rear).

I have owned the vehicle for about 3 years. Since then I have repainted the exterior. Added many pieces of original equipment (grenade boxes, fire extinguisher brackets, Browning 30 cal machine gun (dummy), bullet proof vision blocks (splinter screens), clansman intercom headset/ helmets to name a few. I replaced the original tires with new.) I replaced the original points ignition system with a magnetic electronic system. The original ignition system failed. I also installed a battery disconnect switch.

It is a lot of fun to drive!

Perhaps we need to arrange a road test to see just how much fun it is to drive…

* In its day, Virginia International Raceway hosted many an SCCA race and even a Trans-Am race or two. It has since re-opened with more modern amenities, but Nick England of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, has done an excellent job of compiling photos, race results, programs and other information related to the history of the track.

* Over on Junkyard Life, Jody Potter has the story of a man, his 1957 Chevrolet, and the race that could’ve ended it all for him.

* Looks like BigLorryBlog is truckin’ right along under the new editor, Steve Gray. For one of his first posts, he shared the story of a test drive of an 1898 Daimler, considered to be the world’s first commercial truck. Sounds like the Mercedes-Benz museum needs to get these things out more often!

* For the release of Cars 2, Pixar has commissioned full-size versions of some of the new characters, including Finn McMissile, shot by Stu from Man on the Move at an event in Chelsea, New York City. So, is he more Aston Martin or BMW?

* Finally, who knew there were so many cars based on the original (non-BMW) Mini? Jeroen Booij did, and he has a blog – Maximum Mini – dedicated just to that topic.

* The Smithsonian wants your help in deciding which two of its cars it should bring out of storage to display in the National Museum of American History by voting for one of eight historically significant cars. A Tucker (would that be #1039?) is one of the eight. Voting lasts through January 11. (via)

* Back before the Snowpocalypse that hit New York City, BoingBoing posted about the above “ghost bus” taking over a route in Manhattan. Here’s hoping the MTA puts older buses in occasional service more frequently when better weather rolls around.

* According to Daimler AG, the Gaggenau Mercedes-Benz factory is the oldest automotive plant in the world, founded in 1894. Tachoblog seems to believe that it’s just 100 years old (perhaps they’re referring to the date 100 years ago today when Benz officially took over the plant?), but either way, the former has a fairly in-depth history of the plant.

For the next issue of Hemmings Sports and Exotics, in production now, I was assigned a four page storyÂ on all-wheel-drive passenger cars. The print storyÂ will focus more on milestone machines, but in myÂ digging on the notion of an all-wheel-drive passenger car, I discovered a world of automotive all-wheel-drive beyond theÂ vaunted Jensen FF of the ’60s.

All-wheel-drive actually pre-dates the automobile itself: steam coach builders Burstall & Hill built an all-wheel-drive model as early as the 1820s. British engineer Joseph Diplock patented a four-wheel-drive system for a traction engine, while Ferdinand Porsche developed an electric vehicle that also had all wheels driven, with an electric motor at each wheel, as early as 1899.

The first automobile as we recognize it today (i.e., with a gasoline-powered engine) to get power to all four wheels was the Spyker, a Holland-built car also noted in historic circles for being the first six-cylinder automobile. Prototypes were shown in 1903, and it achieved limited production from 1904-07. A cone clutch within the flywheel took the drive to a separate gearbox; within it lay a differential sending power to the front and rear driveshafts. This also allowed an early version of engine braking, from the days when front brakes were virtually unheard of. The all-wheel-drive was thought to placate skidding, which was common on the primitive, greasy roads of the period. You’ll read a little more about the Spyker in the issue.

Daimler (before its marriage to Benz) custom-built a single all-wheel-drive machine with a touring car body for Bernhard Dernburg, Germany’s Secretary of State of the Colonial Office in Africa. Built in 1907, Dernburg received it in 1908 and had driven it 10,000 kilometers by 1910; today it is known simply as the Dernburg-Wagen. The press notes from Daimler-Benz imply that it was converted to rear-driveÂ circa WWI,Â then was abandoned in Africa after Germany pulled up stakes there, which also means that these photos are likely thatÂ of a replica.

Spyker had some early hillclimb success with their all-wheel-drive efforts, but a bigger splash was made by Ettore Bugatti and 1932’s T53, essentially a 300hp, 5.0L Type 50 road-car engine in a Type 51 racing chassis, with the addition of four-wheel-drive. Louie Chiron broke hillclimbing records at Mont Ventoux and La Turbie in 1932, and Rene Dreyfus re-took the La Turbie record in a Type 53 just two years later, despite the T53 having amassed a reputation for being difficult to steer. Ettore’s son, Jean, famously crashed one out during a race in England. Three were built.

All-wheel-drive was largely relegated to heavy-duty trucks during and between the wars: the weight of the extra equipment necessary to drive all four wheels sapped what little power was available, and steering was said to become diabolically heavy. There were two notable exceptions to this.

Mitsubishi PX33, photo by Lennart Coopmans

FirstÂ was the Mitsubishi PX33, a prototype cabriolet intended for military use, and Japan’s first four-wheel-drive passenger car. It ultimately wasn’t produced, and Mitsubishi retains the sole prototype.

Second was the Russian GAZ-61 of 1940, built by placing a GAZ M2 phaeton body on a four-wheel-drive chassis; it was popular with Red Army supreme commanders. Its followup, the GAZ-61-73 of 1941 used a five-passenger sedan body atop the same chassis. It was sold to both civilian and military customers.

Been waiting for this for months. We had fun with last year’s March Military Campaign, so we’re going to make a concerted effort to extend the campaign this year, bringing you a military-themed post every day for the entire month.

I’ll start off with one I spotted back in January when Litwin and I went down to the Springfield, Massachusetts, swap meet. When stopping for lunch in Northampton, we came across this Daimler-built Ferret (a Mark 2? Somebody correct me if that’s wrong) out advertising for the local Army Barracks store.

It looked like it had sat there for a while, but all four tires held air and it appeared to have current Massachusetts plates on it, so I immediately knew I have to own one and use it as a daily driver. Who cares if they have top speeds of 45 mph? Who cares if it weighs 8,000 pounds? Ain’t nobody going to piddlefart around in front of you in traffic when you’re behind the controls of a Ferret!

I see the Canucks used them. Maybe I’ll run across one during my trip north this summer.